One angry Santa said he was warned not to use "ho ho ho" because it could scare children. Some say it's too close to "ho," which is a bad word in the US.

"Gimme a break," said Julie Gale, who is in charge of a group that tries to protect children.

"We are talking about little kids who do not understand that 'ho, ho, ho' has any other [meaning]," she said. "Leave Santa alone."

One company in Sydney that employs Santas said it was "misleading" to say the company had banned Santa's traditional greeting. They said individual Santas were free to make their own decisions about what to say.(STAFF WRITER, WITH AFP)